The Best of Times, The Worst of Times
by wingsoverthewater
Summary: High school fic. The bohos' freshman year in high school was supposed to be the best time of their lives. Will this hold true? Will the bohos even make it through the year? ON HIATUS
1. Chapter 1: Carpe Damn

A/N: My first full-length RENTfic! Thanks to Broadwaybaby4205 for the idea of a high school fic. The bohos' freshman year in high school was supposed to be the best time of their lives. Will this hold true? Will the bohos even make it through the year? Planned for about ten chapters. Enjoy, and R&R please! By the way, I don't like the title, and it is subject to change.

Disclaimer: I'll say it once for the whole story. I do not own RENT. I own this plotline though. Don't steal the plotline. Don't steal RENT either, because that belongs to Jonathan Larson.

_**The Best of Times, the Worst of Times**_

_Beepbeepbeep beep. Beepbeepbeep beep_. Mimi Marquez rolled over and swatted at her stupid alarm clock. "Shut up." Then she pulled her purple comforter over her head and fell back to sleep for a second.

Then Mimi sat up with a start. _That's why my alarm's so early today! _she thought. It was the first day of high school! She had an adorable outfit picked out, her backpack stuffed with fresh school supplies, and she was ready to soar into high school. For once, she was excited. High school was totally gonna be the best time of her life.

Mimi hopped out of bed and grabbed her outfit. She pulled on a denim mini, grey leggings, a purple vintage band t-shirt, and plaid ballet flats. Leaving her hair loose, Mimi peeked at herself in the mirror. Wild, free, and sassy. Just how she was aiming to look.

Flying down the stairs, Mimi dropped her backpack by the door and made herself toast for breakfast. Her father was gone for work, her sisters didn't leave for school for an hour after Mimi and so were still sleeping, and Mimi's mother was also at work. The house felt almost empty with just her little sisters sleeping upstairs, but Mimi didn't care. It was the first day of school, and she was going to see her boyfriend, Roger, and her five best friends soon. She couldn't wait.

After eating, Mimi brushed her teeth and put on a little eyeshadow, eyeliner, and lipgloss. Then, grabbing her backpack, she was out the door, running for the bus stop.

NO DAY BUT TODAY~NO DAY BUT TODAY~NO DAY BUT TODAY~NO DAY BUT TODAY

Roger Davis stepped off the bus onto the lawn of Scarsdale High. He had always known he'd wind up there, but Roger was nervous. _It's high school, for heaven's sake, _Roger thought. _I have a right to be nervous._

At least he had his girlfriend, Mimi, by his side. And his five best friends from preschool and kindergarten- Mark, Maureen, (Tom) Collins, Joanne, and Angel.

Or at least they were supposed to be by his side. Where were they?

Roger hurried to the front steps of Scarsdale High, scanning the crowd for Mimi's distinctive hair, Mark's glasses and camera, Collins' beanie. And listening for Mo's voice, because Roger had found that that was the easiest way to find Maureen.

Roger spotted two masses of curly brown hair trotting their way towards him. Rushing to them, Roger shouted, "Mimi! Meems! Hey! Mo!"

The girls turned towards Roger. "Hey, Rog!" Mimi called, running into Roger's arms.

Inhaling, Roger smelled his girlfriend's shampoo and her flowery, warm Mimi-ness. Leaning in, Roger kissed the little Latina.

Mimi responded eagerly, standing on her toes and wrapping her arms around Roger's neck. Roger closed his eyes and savored the moment until...

"Ahem!" Maureen cleared her throat. "Do I not merit a 'hello'?"

"Nope."

Maureen slapped Roger upside the head.

"Hey, Roger, Mo, Mimi!" Collins, Mark, Joanne, and Angel had arrived.

Angel grinned at the sight of Maureen hitting Roger. "Such violence, so early on?"

"Damn straight," they both replied.

_BRIIIIIIING_! The bell rung, jolting everyone out of the first-day reverie.

Mark sighed. "No time for a video, I guess. Time to start the day."

"Carpe diem!" Collins said. "Smile and seize the moment."  
Just then, one of the senior-year football players- the big, burly quarterback- threw a crumpled-up ball of paper at Mark's head. Roger promptly seized the paper wad on the rebound and threw it at the football player's enormous, retreating shoulders.

As the bohos started to disperse, hunting for their lockers, Mark sighed again. Under his breath, Mark muttered, "All right then. Carpe damn, Collins. Carpe damn."

A/N: And thus marked the first day of school. By the way, just imagine that the Bohos are all the same age, and knew each other in Kindergarten. I know this was an uninteresting filler chapter, but we gotta start somewhere. The action begins next chapter.

Reviewers get one revenge on a bully, performed by a Fanfic Roger/whoever you want. Romantic Roger just tells you to ignore them, and brings you a bunch of roses to take your mind off the idiot. Angsty Roger sings you a sad song...then Superglues their locker shut. Mischievous Roger replaces their books and sports gear with horse crap, glue, and rotten tomatoes...every day. For a week. And Sexy Roger beats them up, and explains that when it comes to you, he just can't help it ;D


	2. Chapter 2: Olivia and the Cobras

A/N: It's not a dead fic! It might be slow, but not dead :D. So here's chapter 2. A tad short, but you start seeing problems...hmm...

The Best of Times, the Worst Of Times

Chapter 2: Olivia and the Cobras

Mark dropped his blue-and-black backpack on the ground beside a desk at the back of his English I classroom. None of his friends had English with him. He envied Angel, as he had all his classes with Maureen...

_Get over her!_ Roger's voice chided Mark. _Mo doesn't like you. Go chase someone else. There are plenty of hot girls here._

Mark sighed, for probably the thirtieth time that day. He put his head on his desk. Mark's English I class was teeming with the jocks, he had a despised tuna sandwich for lunch, and he still was not able to get over Maureen. It seemed a bad omen for the year.

From his peripheral vision Mark saw movement to his left. Sitting up, Mark noticed the girl who stood next to his desk. She was quite pretty, slender and well-proportioned, with sandy blonde hair that fell straight around her shoulders in layers. She wore a green tank top and white knee-length skirt. Smiling at Mark, the girl, without any trace of self-consciousness, said, "Hi, I'm Olivia. Hate to ask this on the first day, but can I borrow a pencil? I left my whole pencil case at home."

Mark nodded. Dumbstruck at this pretty, most definitely popular girl standing next to him, Mark pulled a pencil out of his backpack and handed it to Olivia.

"Thanks." Olivia turned, then came back. "I didn't get your name."

"I'm Mark."

"Nice to meet you," said Olivia, grinning to reveal a smile that belonged on the cover of Orthodontics Monthly, if there was such a magazine. "Hey, what classes do you have after this?"

Mark pulled his schedule out of his bag and compared it to Olivia's. Olivia squealed. "We have every single class together! That's so cool! Let's have lunch together." Grinning that perfect smile again, Olivia nodded just as the bell rang. "Time for class," she said. Winking flirtatiously at Mark, she turned on her heel and flounced off...only to grab her backpack from a seat on the other side of the room and settle herself right next to him.

The teacher entered, a small old woman with gray hair and an ugly mauve pantsuit. As she started to lecture, Mark sneaked another glance at Olivia. She was amazingly hot. Roger would approve, definitely. And she liked him! What luck! Maybe this year wouldn't be so bad after all.

NO DAY BUT TODAY~ NO DAY BUT TODAY~ NO DAY BUT TODAY~ NO DAY BUT TODAY

Mimi hustled her way through the crowded halls towards her locker. There was one more period until lunch, but some of the school didn't feel like waiting. There was a redheaded girl playing the guitar sitting on a desk outside a classroom. Some Goth kids were redoing their black Sharpie manicures. Three guys playing Hacky Sack swore and scattered as their Hacky Sack flew up and knocked down an exit sign. Shrugging, Mimi twirled the dials on her locker and popped it open. She checked her makeup in the mirror and grabbed her books for Spanish. Mimi loved Spanish, as she could spend her whole time sleeping since she spoke Spanish fluently already.

As Mimi shut her locker, a guy approached her. He was dodgy-looking, looking a bit like a cross between a preppy boy and a gangster. It took Mimi a moment to realize that it was Benjamin Coffin III.

"Mimi!" Benny smiled suavely. The smile did not match his do-rag.

"Benny." Mimi replied with much less enthusiasm.

Benny wrapped an arm around Mimi's cringing shoulders. "Come meet my pals."

"Uhm..." Mimi mumbled. "Benny, I have to get to my classes..." she said.

They approached a group of guys, who all looked similarly dodgy and gangster-y.

"Yo!" Benny said. "This is my girl. Mimi. Mimi, say hi to my pals."

Mimi grimaced. "Benny, I am not your girl!" Turning to the gangster guys, Mimi explained, "You have it all wrong. I'm not his guy, I have a boyfriend."

Benny shook his head. "Forget the loser. From now on, you're my girl." He leaned in and tried to kiss her cheek.

Mimi slapped him, shoved Benny away. She slipped easily out of his grasp and ran towards Spanish I.

Behind her, one of the gang guys shrugged. "Bad luck, Benny. Guess you need a new bitch."

"I don't want a new girl. Mimi's mine. Trust me!" Benny said with more conviction than he felt. He would not let his gang humiliate him. He would get Mimi and earn the respect of the Cobras.

A/N: Ooh...gangs. Sorry about the horridly stereotyped gang thing. I don't know anything about gangs -.-'' So now the plot thickens for Mimi. And life gets better for Mark...

By the way, you'll soon find that Olivia is not a Mary Sue.

Reviewers get a big hug from a fanfic Roger of their choice. :)


	3. Chapter 3: Dear Diary

A/N: OMG i'm so sorry! I've been hella busy. I'm so sorry! Hopefully you haven't forgotten me T_T I had teeth pulled. Homecoming. Guitar/flute/piano lessons. Martial arts. Theater class. Et cetera.

So in this chapter...the action begins! Stuff begins to unravel. Etc. This is going to be in diary form as a change of pace! It's easy to write and it's fun to write :)

Let us begin.

The Best Of Times, The Worst of Times

Chapter 3: Dear Diary

Dear Diary,

Mimi here! Wow. I can't believe it's been a whole week since school started. A WEEK! And I still have all my books. I haven't lost anything yet! That's amazing!

So yeah. Today, we had a sub in English. Some old guy. Mr. Bailey. He was so boring, Roger and I were passing notes the whole class.

And Olivia and Mark became an official couple today! They look adorable together. She's so perfect for him...it's bizarre. She's like a popular perfect prep (lots of P's) who I never would even talk to otherwise, but she's actually got a lot of classes with me. Olivia is really nice, I"m glad Mark met her. They go perfect together. I never would have guessed.

And today I was waiting at the bus stop and just chilling...and then suddenly Benny was next to me. He's creepy. This year he went all gangster and he's starting to scare me. He follows me around in the halls and stuff, and calls me his girl/bitch/ho. Whenever he does I slap/punch/kick/hit him with a textbook. Yeah! :)

So today he just appeared at the bus stop. I was alone there, since I got out of Art early. Angel, who takes the 606 with me, wasn't there yet. Roger, Mark, Collins, and Mo take the 604. Joanne takes the 601. So I was alone at the bus stop, doodling in a notebook, when Benny, all gangster hat and chains and baggy jeans, shows up. He said, "Hey Meems."

I said, "Shut up. Only my _friends _can call me Meems."

"I am your friend. Your boyfriend."

"F--k off." Insert slap here.

"Ow!" He's such a wimp. If I'd slapped Roger or Mark or Collins or Angel like that, they wouldn't have batted an eye. "You know you want me, Mimi. Come on."

I could have puked into his ugly face.

"Leave those arty losers you always spend time with."

That did it. I'm not an arty loser, my friends aren't arty losers, and anyone who doesn't like it...

So I grabbed the strap of my messenger bag and stood up. "Okay, Benny-boy. Take me to your leader." I said.

"Yeah!" he smirked. "Come on."

I turned around as if I'd forgotten something, making Benny turn back. "What's wrong, bitch?"

Using that extra 180 degrees for momentum, I spun around and smashed my bag of hardcover textbooks and Tupperware into Benny's smirking face.

He staggered off, shrieking a swearword trail mix, and I smiled. It felt so good.

It's past midnight now, and I gotta get up early. Goodnight, diary.

Mimi Marquez

Dear Journal,

Mom says that I should keep a journal. Me? Mark Cohen? As if I don't have enough geek status floating around me. Whatever, no one will know.

I asked Olivia out today, and she said yes! I was so freaking nervous. I can't believe she likes me, of all the people in the school. Not Roger, who is much better looking than me, and all tan and ripped from swimming over the summer. Not Collins, who is smarter than me, and funny and not awkward. Not any of the damn jocks. ME!

Olivia is...she makes me feel like maybe I do belong out in the world, not just behind my camera. She's smart, sweet, pretty. And looking at her makes me (and the rest of the guys in the school) hard. For once I"m not Mark, the little blond kid with glasses who tags along after Roger. I'm Mark. I'm Mark, Olivia's boyfriend.

And I feel like maybe I'm getting over Maureen. I still don't get why she dumped me though.

...I sound like a sap. Or a girl. I am going to hide this right now.

Mark

Dear Diary,

It's me. Maureen. This school year is totally not working out as I expected. Mark has found a new girl and I feel like a loser. Why did I dump him?

...I have a lock on my diary so I'm going out with it. I don't like Mark.

I think I like Joanne.

Nah, it's not true. She's a girl. I'm not a lesbian! I'm straight. Besides, you can't go both ways. Right?

Anyways...Nobody believes me on this. Not even Mimi. But something about Olivia bugs me. She's too perfect. Something is bound to come into the picture. It's not right. I love Marky and all, but what would draw a popular kid to Mark, one of us arty boho losers? There are strings here. Hidden lasers. Like in James Bond. Except without the spy gadgets and sexy dresses.

There's a catch here. I know it.

Maureen

A/N: Is Maureen being paranoid or perceptive? Hm...

I left you at an awful cliffy, so I will update within a week, I promise!

Reviewers get a big warm hug from a boho of their choice. "All of the Above" is included in the package!


	4. Chapter 4: The Plot Thickens

A/N: I'm sorry I lied. But...you know the story. I'm busy. School, homework, three instruments, photography for school paper, theater, martial arts. Et cetera.

This one's a bit short. It's going to be centered around the whole Mimi/Roger/Benny problem. The next one will be about Mark and Olivia.

But it's here!

The Best Of Times, The Worst Of Times

Chapter 4: And the Plot Thickens

Mimi and Roger sat together. Tuesdays were the only days they had lunch starting half an hour before the others. Curled together under the tree that was designated the Boho Lunch And Hanging Out Area Tree ("the tree" for short) the two sat, doing math homework. Or maybe "doing math homework".

Mimi, perched in Roger's lap, nestled her head into Roger's shoulder. Roger smiled. Everything had been turbulent lately- Mark spending every possible moment with Olivia and not with Roger. Angel and Collins raving about how they were the perfect couple. Even Mo had been acting off. She was bizarrely quiet- as if she had taken Valium. But right then, everything was good.

"You know, we should be doing homewo-"

Mimi shook her head. "Never thought I'd hear you say that. Are you OK, babe?"

Roger smiled. "I'm fine. I think I must have had a dumb moment."

The two sat together in the grass under the tree, surrounded by school books and their backpacks. But they were oblivious. Mimi curled in Roger's lap, head nestled in his shoulder, with Roger's arms wrapped snugly around her. They fit together, a final puzzle piece in life.

Then, jolting the two out of their reverie, came a voice.

"Mimi baby!"

Mimi's head jolted up, banging into Roger's cheekbone.

"Ow!"

"Crap! What the hell, Meems?"

Mimi turned towards the voice and sighed. It was the last person she wanted to see right then-

"Benjamin Coffin the Third..." Mimi said.

"Naw," Benny said. "Just Benny."

Roger stood up. "What the hell do you want? Mimi isn't your baby. What's your problem?"

Shaking his do-ragged head, Benny smirked at Roger. "She is now, cuz I said so."

Roger stood up, shielding Mimi from Benny. He stood about four inches above Benny. Well-muscled from swimming all summer and extremely angry, Roger was a force to be reckoned with.

Benny could see this. So he shrugged. "Whatever, Meems. So I'll meet you at four at our secret spot. See ya, babe!"  
Roger could not believe his ears. Secret spot? Baby? What the hell? Mimi wouldn't screw around behind his back...would she? Normally he wouldn't have believed it, but Mimi had been distant lately...She had blown off a plan to go to lunch with him the other day...she had been acting so odd. Suddenly everything was hot and cold, fast and slow at the same time.

What with this, and Mark off with the popular kids, and Maureen acting all weird, Roger lost it. He turned to the frustrated-looking Latina girl. "Mimi?"

She sighed. "It wasn't anything, Roger. Benny's-"

"Are you screwing around behind my back? What the hell was that?"

Mimi turned cherry red. "How could you think that, Roger? I love you, you know that!"

But Roger heard none of this. It all made sense now in his enraged eyes. "I know that you're lying, Meems. It's okay. If you want to be with him..."

"NO!" Mimi shrieked. "WHY WON'T YOU LISTEN TO ME? THAT WAS BENNY. I'M NOT SCREWING AROUND WITH HIM! WHY DO YOU THINK THAT!?"

Roger blocked off Mimi's beautiful voice. Well, hell with it. If she was going to mess around with Benny of all people...

He shoved his books in his backpack and stood up. "Mimi. You don't need to lie to me. But now I know."

And Roger stood up and walked away from the only girl he had ever truly loved.

Mark sat at the Popular Lunch Table. He felt like such an outsider here, dorky little himself with his camera. But then Olivia hugged him, and the feeling went away for a bit.

Olivia slid into the seat beside him and wrapped her lanky arms around him. "Marky! How was your day?"

"Fine..." Mark grinned. Pulling out his camera, he said, "You look gorgeous. Lemme get a picture of you."

Olivia lightly knocked the camera away. "Ma-ark. I don't like pictures!"

"But you look-"

Olivia smiled and pecked Mark on the cheek, giving him butterflies. "I know. But why don't you just put your camera down for a while? And we can just chill and talk."

Mark shrugged. He loved his camera...but if Olivia asked, it was OK.

He turned the camera off and put it into his backpack.

"Good." Olivia said. "So did you hear about what happened between Brian and Carrie the other day?"  
"No."

"I have to tell you about it! See, here's what happened..."

Mark listened to the story. His camera was more interesting, but for Olivia he'd do this.

A/N: I know, that last bit is boring. It's plot development.

I'm so sorry this is late...So reviewers and readers too get virtual cookies from a RENT character of choice.


	5. AUTHOR'S NOTE

Hello readers...I'm sorry if you thought this was an update. This story has been at a standstill for a long time, and I cannot make anything come out of it. So I'm putting it on hiatus. If you want to know what I was going to make out of the plot, just PM me. Sorry again. But I'll still be around the RENT section of , doing oneshots and stuff. Look for more stuff :)

-Wingsoverthewater


	6. AN

Hello faithful readers! *sigh* Bad news. For some very personal reasons, I am changing my pen name. If you want to know the story, PM me. I'm now Broken-once-again. Thanks.


	7. Another AN

Another A/N. I have decided that instead of creating security like hell, I'll just create a new account. If you are one of my beloved readers, PM me for my new pen name. Thank you.


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